'VH1 Hip Hop Honors' Salutes the Pioneers of Hip Hop from Its First Ladies to Its Boyz 'N the Hood on Monday, September 26 at 9pm*

'VH1 Hip Hop Honors' Salutes the Pioneers of Hip Hop from Its First Ladies to Its Boyz 'N the Hood on Monday, September 26 at 9pm*

The Second Annual Hip Hop Celebration Will Feature Tributes to LL Cool J, Big Daddy Kane, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Notorious B.I.G., Ice T, Salt-N-Pepa, and the Film: Boyz 'N the Hood

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., July 14 /PRNewswire/ -- VH1 will once again honor the hip hop pioneers and legends that have made significant contributions to all aspects of pop culture with the second annual "VH1 Hip Hop Honors." This year's honorees include LL Cool J, Big Daddy Kane, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Notorious B.I.G., Ice T, Salt-N-Pepa, and the film: Boyz N The Hood.

Premiering on Monday, September 26 at 9PM*, "VH1 Hip Hop Honors," will celebrate the players who broke new ground and pioneered the genre into a true cultural phenomenon. "VH1 Hip Hop Honors" will be taped at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on Thursday, September 22.

The music and influence of each of the honorees will be recognized through performances by classic artists in collaboration with today's hottest new talent. Generations of hip hop will bridge the gap for one exceptional night to set it off with the original style and flavor that sparked and inspired the evolution of the music.

Last year, VH1's inaugural show honored DJ Kool Herc, DJ Hollywood, KRS-One, Public Enemy, Rock Steady Crew, Run DMC, Sugarhill Gang, Tupac Shakur and The Graffiti Movement and featured performances by Kid Rock, Fat Joe and Terror Squad, Nas, Beastie Boys, Anthrax, MC Hammer and Grandmaster Flash, Public Enemy, Sugarhill Gang, Chic, Doug E. Fresh and Kid Capri and appearances by Ice T, Method Man, Salt-N-Pepa, Roselyn Sanchez, Taye Diggs, Reverend Al Sharpton, James Brown and Debbie Harry.

In addition to artist nominee profiles and an exclusive hip hop timeline VH1.com is launching FREESTYLE 59, an online contest to seek out the best undiscovered MCs across the country, beginning July 12. Five finalists will be selected by a celebrity panel of judges, flown to New York to record a video, and one winner will be chosen by online voting via VH1.com and announced during the 2nd annual "VH1 Hip Hop Honors."

"VH1 Hip Hop Honors" are executive produced by Lee Rolontz for VH1 and Jac Benson for Blackjac Entertainment. Louis J. Horvitz will direct. Nelson George and Fab Five Freddie are consulting producers.

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in over 87 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital services including VH1 Classic, VH1 Soul, VH Uno and VH1 Country. Connect with VH1 at http://www.vh1.com/.

VH1 is a registered trademark of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom International Inc. MTV Networks also operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen worldwide.

* all times ET/PT

Contacts: Tracy McGraw/VH1 Toni Herron/VH1 212/846-7879 212/846-7528

Vanessa Reyes/MTVN Tina Wynn and Toni Brown/T&T 310/752-8081 201/886-8770

Source: VH1

CONTACT: Tracy McGraw, +1-212-846-7879, or Toni Herron +1-212-846-7528 both of VH1; or Vanessa Reyes of MTVN, +1-310-752-8081; or Tina Wynn and Toni Brown, both of T&T, +1-201-886-8770

Web site: http://www.vh1.com/

------- Profile: Ent